AustLit

The youngest of four children, Norma spent her primary school years in various parts of Tasmania including Devonport, Butler's Gorge, Lower Longley and Hobart. She attended Hobart High School for five years where she excelled at languages. She graduated from the University of Tasmania (BA, DipEd) and then taught at King Island District School and subsequently at several Hobart State and Catholic secondary schools. Married and with two children, Norma studied Divinity at the United Faculty of Theology, Melbourne, graduating with a Bachelor of Divinity Degree. She was ordained as a Minister in the Uniting Church of Australia on 30 November 1986 and served in the Hobart parishes of New Town (1987-1996) and Scots-Memorial (1997-2002). She also worked as part-time hospital chaplain at the Royal Hobart Hospital from 1997-2002. Following her retirement from full-time ministry, Norma completed graduate work in Liturgical Studies at the United Faculty of Theology. She lists her interests as music, walking, gardening, glass work (Tiffany) and writing, and describes herself as 'a lover of words with a passion for reading, writing, languages and word puzzles'.